The Billionaire's Best Friend(31)
Lauren gave Olivia what she hoped was a smile, and for the first time all night, she thought maybe she could somehow become friends with this woman. Like Kevin’s parents and the other guests there, Olivia had been polite but not friendly. At least not until now.
“You and my sister seemed to get along well.” Kevin gave her hand a squeeze as he drove. “She doesn’t usually take to new people the way she did to you.”
“Really? Maybe it was because we found something in common, the ballet.”
“Olivia does love the ballet. She trained at The School of American Ballet in New York for years. Before my mother convinced her otherwise, she hoped to join the New York City Ballet.”
Why would any parent convince their child not to strive for what she wanted? Especially if she had the talent to achieve that goal. If she ever had children, she would never stop them from pursuing what they truly wanted. “She must have been very good if that school admitted her. Why didn’t your mom want her to continue?”
Kevin put both hands on the steering wheel, his eyes focused on the road. “Let’s just say a ballerina would do little for Walsh and Miles.”
His tone made Lauren wonder if he’d had other ambitions besides a career in business. She could not picture him as anything but a successful CEO, yet that meant nothing. Pressure from parents to pursue certain avenues in life was not unheard of. Her own parents had supported all the decisions she and her siblings made, but many of her classmates in high school had faced such pressure. If Kevin had bowed to his parents’ pressure, would he expect the same from his own children? While way too soon in the relationship to be thinking about children, the answer to such a question would tell her a lot about him. Depending on how far this thing between them went, she’d have to approach the subject. But not tonight. Who knew how he might interpret such a question?
“What did she do instead?”
“She got a degree in finance. Olivia worked for the company until she married Greg last year.”
She couldn’t imagine the woman she’d spoken with at dinner being happy pouring over financial numbers and spreadsheets. “What about you? Did you ever think about doing something other than business?”
“When I was ten, I decided to be a rock star like the ones on TV. I already knew how to play the piano, so I took up the drums. Practiced every free minute for about three years. Gave it up when I went to boarding school. I haven’t touched a drum set since.”
When she’d asked the question, she hadn’t been referring to his childhood dreams. Few people followed through with those. If they did, there would be an over-abundance of astronauts and doctors in the world. “What about later on?” They passed under a streetlight, and she noticed Kevin’s grip on the steering wheel tighten.
“No, I planned to take over for my father and then venture into politics at some point.”
“When I was ten I wanted to be an actress in the movies. Then for a while I wanted to be a dolphin trainer. Sometime around my junior year in high school I decided on teaching.”
“I’m sure your parents were happy when you decided against the dolphins.”
“I don’t think so. They always supported everything I wanted to try. Dance, singing, art classes. They did the same with Kelly and Matt. One summer they even let Matt go to space camp because he insisted he wanted to be an astronaut. What about you?”
“My parents made sure I had plenty of extracurricular activities,” Kevin answered stiffly, before lapsing into silence for the remainder of the car ride.
Chapter 6
Nate pulled into a spot in the parking lot of O’Donnell’s Family Restaurant and Pub. After a day of interviewing victims, he wanted nothing more than a cheeseburger and a cold beer. Both of which he could get here.
Passing by the door into the restaurant side, he headed straight into the pub. Despite the crowded parking lot, few patrons were inside. Two guys sat at the bar while two more played a game of pool down at the far end of the pub.
“Do you want a menu?” the bartender, a bodybuilder type with a bald head, asked when Nate sat down.
“No need. Give me a cheeseburger and a bottle of Sam Adams.”
The bartender slapped a cardboard coaster on the bar and nodded. “You got it.”
Behind Nate the door opened, sending in a blast of unusually cool April air. Nate didn’t bother to look over. Instead, he looked up at the large-screen TV hung on the wall where the sportscaster gave his predictions for that weekend’s Bruins game against the Rangers. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw someone pull out a bar stool and sit.